Illuminated display characters

ABSTRACT

AN ILLUMINATED DISPLAY CHARACTER FOR A SIGN IS FORMED WITH A RECTANGULAR TRANSLUCENT COVER DETACHABLY SECURED TO A SIMILARLY SHAPED BODY UNIT AND OVERLYING AN ELECTRIC LAMP WHICH IS HOUSED WITHIN THE BODY UNIT TO ILLUMINATE THE CHARACTER. PART OF THE COVER IS DARKENED WITH OPAQUE MATERIAL ARRANGED TO OUTLINE AN INTELLIGIBLE TRANSLUCENT LETTER OR NUMBER LOCATED CENTRALLY OF THE FACE AND ILLUMINATED BY THE LAMP. BY REPLACING ONE COVER ON THE BODY UNIT WITH ANOTHER OF THE SAME SIZE AND SHAPE AND FORMED WITH A DIFFERENT TRANSLUCENT LETTER OR NUMBER, THE SAME BODY UNIT AND LAMP MAY BE USED TO DISPLAY VARIOUS LETTERS AND NUMBERS.

1971 R. H. RUDOLPH ILLUMINATED DISPLAY CHARACTERS Filed March 25, 1968?a/ A g i ggblu dTTOfl-NDEYJ #Aw/f //A v mm Q.

United States Patent O Int. Cl. oar 13/00 US. Cl. 40-130 4 ClaimsABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE An illuminated display character for a Signis formed with a rectangular translucent cover detachably secured to asimilarly shaped body unit and overlying an electric lamp which ishoused within the body unit to illuminate the character. Part of thecover is darkened with opaque material arranged to outline anintelligible translucent letter or number located centrally of the faceand illuminated by the lamp. By replacing one cover on the body unitwith another of the same size and shape and formed with a differenttranslucent letter or number, the same body unit and lamp may be used todisplay various letters and numbers.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to illuminateddisplay characters in the form of numbers or letters which are mountedinterchangeably on a sign board to convey an advertising message and arelighted by lamps on the characters themselves. More particularly, theinvention constitutes an improvement over the display charactersdisclosed in US. Pats. 3,404,475 and 3,447,253 in which mountingfasteners on the characters and supporting rails on the sign board alsoserve as conductors for the energizing circuits of the lamps. Thecharacters disclosed in these applications are formed by a body unit anda removable translucent cover each having the geometrical shape of aparticnlar character, the body unit supporting the lamp and the coveroverlying the lamp to diffuse the light emitted therefrom.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention aims primarily to providenew and improved illuminated display characters of the above generaltype which are considerably less expensive to manufacture and, at thesame time, enable the display of a wider range of different advertisingmessages with a fewer number of body units and lamps than has beenpossible heretofore. More specifically, the body units and covers ofvarious ones of the characters are formed of a similar rectangular shapeso as to be interchangeable with one another, and each cover is formedwith a display face having contrasting lighter and darker areas arrangedto define an intelligible character located generally centrally of theface. By removing one cover from a body unit and replacing the coverwith one of a series of similarly shaped covers defining differentintelligible characters, the same body unit and lamp may be used toproduce any letter or number. Thus, with only a small number of bodyunits and a larger number of interchangeable covers, many differentmessages may be displayed.

The invention also resides in the novel construction of the body unitsand the covers enabling manufacture of the latter with a comparativelysmall amount of material and at relatively low costs; in the uniquearrangement of the contrasting lighter and darker areas on the displayfaces of the covers to produce a distinctive visual effect highlightingthe intelligible characters; and in the correlation of the color of thecharacters with that of "ice the sign board to enhance the overallappearance of the display.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent fromthe following detailed description taken in connection with theaccompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a Signboard with display characters embodying the novel features of thepresent invention.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary cross-section taken substantiallyalong the line 22 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary cross-section taken substantially along the line33 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of one of the display characters.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of one of the covers for the displaycharacters.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT As shown in the drawings forpurposes of illustration, the invention is embodied in a display sign ofthe type especially suitable for use in restaurants, bars and otherestablishments for advertising and merchandising purposes. Herein, thesign comprises a display board 10 formed by a generally rectangularframe 11 surrounding a backing panel 13 (FIG. 2) to Which is fastened aseries of vertically spaced rails 14 for supporting interchangeabledisplay units or sign characters 15. The latter are arranged on therails to convey an advertising or inform-ative message and areindividually illuminated by one or more electric lamps 16 (FIG. 2).While the display characters have been shown specifically asrepresenting letters of the alphabet, it will be understood thatnumbers, symbols and other such intelligible characters may be displayedequally well.

In the exemplary sign board 10, the rails 14 parallel one another andextend horizontally of the backing panel 13 just rearwardly of theforward face of the frame 11. Each rail is made from an elongated stripof spring metal which is suitably bent and shaped to form a forwardlyopening mouth defined by upper and lower resiliently yieldable lips 17(FIG. 2) which are urged into light pressing engagement with one anotherby virtue of the resilience of the metal. To support the charactersinterchangeably on the board, two metal fasteners in the form of prongs19 attached to each character are snapped into adjacent ones of therails and are gripped securely but releas'ably by the resilient lips,the prongs being spaced vertically from one another in accordance withthe spacing of the rails. In addition to supporting the characters, therails conduct electrical current to the lamps 16 from a suitable powersource (not shown) connected to the rails by leads 20. Each pair ofprongs is connected electrically to the terminals of the lamp of itsrespective character so that an energizing circuit illuminating the lampis completed through the rails and the prongs as an incident toattaching the character to the sign board.

To enhance the appearance of the sign, a display face for the sign board10 is formed by a series of horizontally extending and vertically spacedslats 21 which substantially cover the rails 14 and establish anattractive background for the characters 15. As shown most clearly inFIG. 2, the slats are fastened at their ends to the frame 11 and arespaced vertically from one another to define narrow elongated slots 23alined with the rails and accommodating projection of the prongs 19 pastthe slats and into contact with the rails. Thus, the slats, whichpreferably are made of plastic, hide the rails from view and present anattractive display face forming a background for the characters 15.

Herein, each character comprises a supporting element or body unit 24(FIG. 4) and a cover 25, the body unit supporting the lamp 16 and theprongs 19 and being fastened detachably to the cover. The cover overliesthe lamp to protect the latter and the interior of the body unit andalso to diffuse the light emitted from the lamp.

In accordance with the present invention, each cover is formed with adisplay face 26 having contrasting lighter and darker areas arranged todefine a particular intelligible character 27 (FIG. 5), and variouscovers and body units 24 are constructed of a similar size and shape sothat different covers can be used interchangeably with different bodyunits. As a result, various different messages can be displayed with thesame body units simply by using the latter in conjunction with othercovers having dif ferent contrasting lighter or darker areas arranged todefine dilferent intelligible characters 27. The number of body unitsrequired to display different messages thus is reduced since only adifferent cover is needed to change the visual effect produced by anyparticular character 15.

In the present instance, each body unit 24 is preferably but notnecessarily shaped as a relatively deep rectangular dish and is moldedin one piece from an opaque black plastic material. Shaped as a dish,the body unit defines a box-like enclosure formed by side walls 30projecting outwardly from the margins of an inner base plate 31 to leavethe body unit with an open outer side which is closed by the cover 25.The lamp 16 is housed within the body unit 24, with the side walls 30advantageously being sufficiently deep, herein about /4 of an inch, toproject outwardly into surrounding relation with the lamp and therebyenclose the sides of the lamp.

As shown most clearly in FIGS. 2 and 3, the lamp 16 is of the miniaturetype adapted to be snapped into a conducting socket supported on thebase plate 31 within the confines of the side walls 30. The socketcomprises a pair of U-shaped spring metal clips 33 and 34 which receiveand grip a neck on the lamp to hold the latter in place. Two shortterminal wires (not shown) formed as part of the lamp and connected tothe filament thereof lie alongside the neck and contact the clips toconduct current between the clips and the lamp. The clips are supportedby a conductor 35 (FIG. 2) in the form of a strip of metal extendingalongside the base plate 31 and formed with an outwardly bent lower leg36 underlying the clips. Sandwiched between the upper side of the leg 36and the lower side of the clips is a pad 37 of non-conductive materialserving to insulate the clips from the conductor 35. A similarinsulating pad 39 is formed with holes registering with the clips and istelescoped over the clips to hold the latter in upright positions and inspaced apart relation, the two pads and the leg 36 of the conductor 35being fastened together by a pair of rivets 40 (FIG. 3).

To conduct current between the rails 14 and the lamp 16, the upper prong19 projects outwardly of the body unit 24 through a hole 41 (FIG. 4)near the upper end of the base plate 31 and is formed at its inner endwith a vertical tab 43 (FIG. 2) which is fastened to the plate and theupper end of the conductor 35 by a rivet 44. The lower end or leg 36 ofthe conductor 35 is connected electrically to the clip 34 by a smallmetal tab (not shown), and thus one side of a circuit is establishedthrough one rail 14, the upper prong 19, the conductor 35, and the clip34. The other side of the circuit is established through an adjacentrail 14, the lower prong 19, a rivet 46 (FIG. 2) fastening the lowerprong to the base plate 31, and a lead 47 connecting the rivet 46 to acon ducting tab 49 connected to the clip 33.

In this instance, the cover 25 also is formed in the shape of arectangular dish and includes a peripheral rim 50 extending around thedisplay face 26. The cover is sized to telescope over the outer side ofthe body unit 24 and is held detachably on the latter by a pair of lugs51 (FIGS. 3 and 4) formed on the side walls 30. When the cover isattache-d, the side walls first flex inwardly to allow the edges of therim 50 to pass by the lugs. Thereafter, the lugs snap into and interlockwith a groove 53 (FIG. 4) formed along the inner side of the rim andcooperating with the lugs to hold the cover in place. Because the bodyunit 24 is sufficiently deep to enclose the lamp 16, the cover may bemade relatively shallow, herein about of an inch deep, so that lessmaterial is required to form the cover than the body unit. Since atypical display package includes considerably more interchangeablecovers than body units, the formation of the covers with a smalleramount of material helps reduce the cost of the package.

Advantageously, the cover 25 is molded from translucent plastic whichmay be either white or lightly tinted to diffuse the light from the lamp16 with a selected color effect. After the cover has been molded, thecontrasting lighter and darker areas are formed on the display face 26to define the intelligible character 27 which herein is shown in FIG. 5as being the letter A. In this specific instance, the letter 27 isformed by masking off or otherwise protecting a centrally located areaof the display face with a shield in the shape of the letter and then bycoating the remainder of the display face with a relatively dark opaquepaint or other suitable opaque material. This leaves the cover with atranslucent wall portion shaped as the letter 27 and outlined by thedarker opaque areas. A silk screening process is especially suitable forforming the letter on the display face.

Since light from the lamp 16 passes only through the translucent portionof the display face 26, the letter 27 is illuminated and is highlightedagainst the opaque background presented by the remainder of the displayface. A particularly attractive and distinctive arrangement may beproduced by forming the cover 25 from translucent white plastic (so thatthe resulting letter 27 will be white) and by coating the rest of thedisplay face 26 and the rim 50 with a black shade identical in color tothat of the plastic of body unit 24. Preferably, the salts 21 of thedisplay board 10 are colored the same as the darker areas of thecharacters 15 in order to highlight the letters 27 and to cause theopaque portions of the characters to blend in with the board.

While the display characters 15 could all be of the same width, it ispreferable to use somewhat wider characters for the wide letters M and Wand to use narrower characters for the narrow letter I and for certainnumbers and symbols. This results in all letters and numbers beingspaced evenly from adjacent letters and numbers when the characters areattached side-by-side on the sign board 10.

From the foregoing, it will be apparent that the display characters 15of the present invention can be manufactured at relatively low costssince, at the most, only three different sizes and shapes of body units24 and covers 25 are needed to provide the entire alphabet and all ofthe numerals. Thus, tooling costs are kept relatively low. Becausecovers of similar widths are detachable from the body units and areinterchangeable with one another, a purchaser need only buy a smallnumber of body units and a somewhat larger number of covers withdifferent intelligible characters 27 to display any desired message. Byusing only a relatively small amount of material to make the covers, thelatter can be manufactured and sold at low costs thus reducing theoverall cost of a display package which includes several extra covers.Finally, the characters 27 defined by the contrasting opaque andtranslucent areas of the covers are highly distinctive and present anextremely attractive display.

I claim as my invention:

1. In an illuminated display unit adapted to be attached remova'bly to adisplay board, the combination of, an opaque body molded of plastic andshaped as a relatively deep rectangular dish having one open side, anopposite closed side, and walls extending around and projecting fromsaid closed side, a pair of electrical conductors on said body andinsulated electrically from one another, at

least one lamp housed within said body and electrically connected acrosssaid conductors for energization through the conductors, two conductingfasteners projecting outwardly from the closed side of said body forattachment to the display board and connected electrically to saidconductors, a generally rectangular cover made of translucent plasticand of substantially lesser depth than said body, said overlying saidlamp to protect the latter and to diifuse light emitted from the lampwhen the lamp is energized, said cover having an outer display facedarkened by opaque material coated only over selected areas of the coverand outlining an intelligible character to leave the face with agenerally centrally located translucent wall portion in the shape ofsuch character, and means holding said cover telescoped with said bodywith a snap-fit and releasable to enable removal and replacement of thecover with another rectangular cover of similar size but having acentrally located translucent Wall portion in the shape of a differentintelligible character.

2. A display unit as defined in claim 1 in which said closed side ofsaid body supports said conductors and said lamp, said closed side andsaid walls being molded integrally with one another.

3. A display unit as defined in claim 1 in which said cover also isshaped as a rectangular dish of substantially lesser depth than saidbody and is telescoped removably over said body.

4. In an illuminated display sign, the combination of, a sign boardhaving a frame, at least two substantially horizontal and generallyparallel rails fastened to said frame in vertically spaced relation andcomposed of electrical conducting material, an upright display facefastened to said frame in overlying relation with said rails anddefining at least two horizontal slots alined with the rails, saiddisplay face having a selected color, an illuminated display unit havinga generally rectangular body molded of plastic and shaped as arelatively deep rectangular dish having an open side, an opposite closedside and walls extending around and projecting outwardly from saidclosed side, a pair of electrical conductors fastened to said body andinsulated electrically from one another, two vertically spacedconducting fasteners projecting from said closed side of said bodytoward said board, said fasteners being connected electrically to saidconductors and projecting through said slots into detachable engagementwith said rails to hold said display unit on the rails in front of theexposed side of said display face and to conduct electrical currentbetween the rails and said conductors, at least one lamp housed withinsaid body and electrically connected across said conductors forenergization through the conductors, a generally rectangular cover madeof translucent material and of substantially lesser depth than said bodyoverlying said lamp to protect the latter and to diffuse light emittedfrom the lamp when the lamp is energized, said cover having a surfacedarkened with opaque material of the same general color as said displayface and located only over selected areas of the surface to define anintelligible character, and means holding said cover on said body andreleasable to enable removal and replacement of the cover with anotherrectangular cover of similar size but having a display face defining adiiferent intelligible character.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,015,900 1/1962 Frink et al. 1303,221,432 12/1965 Gold 40-I43X 3,404,475 10/ 1968 Coad 40130' 3,418,73812/1968 Goodman 40l40X 3,447,253 6/1969 Coad 40130 EUGENE R. CAPOZIO,Primary Examiner R CARTER, Assistant Examiner

